Written by Brandon George
From the opening explosive moments, Third Law’s “Demo 2021” is a fierce testament to the band’s abilities and a hopeful sign of things to come. The demo, released in early February, lines up five tracks from the Western Massachusetts Straight Edge Meltacore band in a sequence that takes the listener through vocalist and lyricist Jerry Edge’s deep interpersonal reckoning; reckoning with the last year, reckoning with addiction, and reckoning with the often complicated and painful relationships we have with family.
Between the teeth-clenching riffs, pulverizing breakdowns, enticing use of samples, and thematic consistency, the limited production is the only thing that makes it clear that this release is a demo and not a more formalized project. From the opening track, "Carry On", the band has an incredible sense of transitioning between sections and songs deftly. Using unison runs, punctuating vocals and drum hits, and deft driving riffs, the tracks dance through their narratives to form full arcs that leave the listener feeling they’ve been taken on a deeply personal journey.
The second track, "C21H23NO5", brings with it a musing, if you will: Why haven’t more hardcore bands sampled Willem Dafoe? Dafoe’s gravelly tones crawl in, the guitars and drums smash together, and the listener is treated to the foreboding line from the Rami Brothers’ Spider-Man film, “I offer you friendship, you spat in my face.”
It acts as a brilliant tone-setter that lets the listener know exactly what comes next. The song then sets into a groove creating a building sense of tension before bursting into the verse.
This is a tactic Third Law implements several times throughout the demo with ferocious effectiveness. The tracks employ this confidence and a variety of form that makes them immediately recognizable from one another and makes each section more memorable.
The unbridled rage exuding from these tracks is persistently upheld with moments of reprieve serving to greater build tension and emotional connection. You first have the gentle, sample-covered guitar tones that open the "Interlude", bridging "C21H23NO5" to the eruptive "Dependency."
Then comes the closer, "Deadbeat", with its angular, ominous tapping. This is one of the standout moments of the record, as it shows the band’s ability to drift into a tonally and conceptually different style and end up bringing it back around as fuel for the fire of the final track’s incendiary ultimatum.
Another laudable aspect of this release is Edge’s biting and bare lyrics. Third Law has no time for ambiguity, and Edge’s lyricism cuts to the bone with each scream and growl.
By the time the final track comes around, I was fully enraptured and enraged alongside the band when the vocals howl, “You’re not a father / Just a fallacy / You fucking coward.” It’s statements like this pure, unbridled, fervent yawp that keep the listener coming back for more and invested in the band’s journey.
"Demo 2021" is available wherever you listen to music, and you can follow the band on Twitter @ThirdLaw3. Let us know what you thought of this release at @lgndsoftmrw!
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